Sustainable Traffic Management: Freiburg, Germany

Background Information• Freiburg is a city in

Germany with a population of over 200,000.

• In the early 1970s it was a city with major traffic problems.

5 Pillars of the PlanTraffic Calm

ing

Increasing Bicycle Use

Controlling Parking

Concentrating Traffic

Public Transport

Pillar 1: Traffic Calming• City centre turned into pedestrian zone in 1973.• Cobbles on streets to slow traffic.• 30 km per hour speed limit on residential roads

Pillar 2: Concentrating Traffic• Using key roads to concentrate traffic

(Bündelungsstrassen)• Diverting traffic away from city centre and the

most scenic location (Bank of the River Dreisam)

Pillar 3: Limiting Parking• There is no free, uncontrolled parking in the city

centre.• Parking is on a sliding scale to encourage

commuters to park and ride from the outskirts.

Pillar 4: Public Transport• City promotes public transport including Trams,

and has added new routes in recent years.• Monthly travel card for entire city and

surrounding districts available cheaply.

Pillar 5: Bicycle Use• City promotes bicycle use.• More than 500km of interconnected bicycle

lanes.• More than 5,000 parking spaces for bikes in city

centre.• At many junctions bike have priority.

Indicators of Success

• From 1967 to 1997 people using cars on a regular bases fell from 63% to 40%.

• 4,000 fewer cars using the city centre each day (even though population increased).

• 70% of local journeys are made using trams.• 3,000 km of public transport lines.

Possible Exam Question

Describe a sustainable strategy of transport management in a city in the EU that you have studied. Evaluate its success.

[8 marks]